Hire a Remote Paralegal

What a paralegal does

A paralegal performs substantive legal support work under attorney supervision. Compared with a legal assistant, the role involves more research, drafting and case preparation.

Typical responsibilities

• Legal and factual research

• Drafting pleadings, discovery requests and summaries for attorney review

• Organizing and reviewing documents in discovery

• Preparing exhibits, timelines and case chronologies

• Coordinating with clients, experts and opposing counsel’s staff as directed

• Cite-checking and proofreading

Skills to look for

• Strong legal writing and research skills

• Ability to summarize accurately

• Detail orientation with long documents

• Understanding of court procedures in the relevant jurisdiction

• Confidentiality

Software and tools

• Westlaw, Lexis or Casetext

• Clio or other practice management systems

• Relativity or similar review platforms

• Microsoft Word and Adobe Acrobat

• Court e-filing systems

Experience to look for

Ask for the practice areas and jurisdictions they supported, and request a writing sample scrubbed of confidential information. Confirm any credentials and understand that requirements differ by country.

Interview questions

1. Walk me through your research process for a new issue.

2. How do you summarize a deposition or long document?

3. Tell me about a deadline you nearly missed and how you recovered.

4. How do you check citations?

5. What would you do if you found a key fact that harms our case?

6. Which practice areas do you know best?

When to hire a paralegal

• Attorneys are handling research and organization themselves

• Case volume is increasing

• Discovery review is slowing matters down

Hiring a paralegal internationally

Remote paralegals typically support with research, drafting and organization rather than acting as U.S. licensed professionals. Needs review: confirm with your ethics counsel how supervision, data access and unauthorized-practice rules apply to your work.